what was the finish (if any) on the visable part (engine side) of the steering column shaft and coupler for a 69 b-body (LA built, auto, console shift, non lock out if it matters)? in searching seems as if the info i found that says it was painted black or black phosphate are from 70's e-bodies. was unsure if this info applies to 69 b-bodies or not????????

mines apart and I am getting close to putting back together.

Thanks in advance

I have a 1969 B-body column apart right now,(column shift car btw) and the lower shaft and coupler are painted a gloss black. Main tube and jacket parts are suede finish.
Although I can't say for 100% if it's original or not, but I'm confident enough that it is ,that's the way it's going back together.

I'll post some pictures once it's completed if needed( trying to decide if I want to send the inner shift tube to be replated or not)

anyone know the order of events? was the coupler and shaft assembled then painted...meaning that the retainer was also painted? trying to figure out why they sell stainless steel retainers. my original thought had been that they sell them cause the retainer was left natural and thus the stainless steel would be a more durable option long term. i also though the shaft was natural as well so my instincts are not always right.

also is whole visable length of the shaft painted? on the e-body stuff i read it seemed that it was just a variable length such as the lowest 10 inches or so fading to an overspray.

Thanks

The lower shaft parts were not painted. Take a close look at the shaft where it up inside the inner tube and you can see the original finish, not sure what the coating/plating is, greyish green? The coupler was not painted either, had a type of phosphate coating on it. The inner tube is bare metal. Thin retainer was bare metal also. stainless is a good idea. Both plates are gloss black, main tube is suede paint matching the interior. This info is from a disassembled unit off a never restored 68 318 Coronet 440. I found some spray paint that looks close to the colors, will look for the info if you need it.

I agree I haven't seen the coupler or lower shaft painted black, at least on 68 - 70 B-bodies. But I NEVER say NEVER!

Here is a pic of an original 5000 mile survivor 69 b-body. The shaft and coupler are not painted black.

A pic of just the coupler

My column for an A12 RR is in my garage getting ready for some resto soon. The shaft appears to be natural, however, there are trace amounts of black paint on the coupler.

closer pic.

my coupler was definetly painted....

Bill,
Where was the car built you are working on now?

Mine is an LA car. coupler and lower shaft were black when I pulled the column. appears to have been spray bombed as the black on the inner shaft was also on the outside of the lower bearing and on the lower steering column main sleeve tube engineside and did not extend higher up the inner shaft (i.e., the inner shaft above the bearing was bare steel). to me looked like the column had never been apart. So my guess would be if the shaft was black from the factory the paint stopped before the point where the lower bearing would wind up when assembled. then at a future date when someone sloppily painted shaft column with a spray can they went up to the lower bearing with it....making the original paint if present difficult to unmask. i used lacquer thinner to remove the paint and to me looked as if could have been only a single coat as it all bubbled in a few seconds upon submersion.

The 1970 column I have apart is a late 1969 SBD Lynch Rd Plymouth B-body.
but I'll have to ck the plant and date on the 1969 car later today. It's a 1969 Charger R/T with column auto.

I've done a few columns and these 2 are the 1st I've found that I'm confident are factory paint.
And both will be repainted exactly the way I found them.

Here's another little tidbit from the 1970 column that will be redone.